ལས་བརྒྱ་ཐམ་པ་པ 10.27

10.27

“O monks, what do you think? Those who were the master teachers of their own retinues then are none other than the sages Kaineya and Śaila. Those who were their students then are none other than these one thousand monks. At that time they prayed, ‘May we please and not displease Uttara, the young brahmin prophesied by the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa to be the next blessed buddha. May we go forth in his doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifest arhatship.’

“So it is, monks, now that I myself have become the very equal of the totally and completely awakened Buddha Kāśyapa—equal in strength, equal in deeds, and equal in skillful means—that they have pleased me, not displeased me, gone forth in my very doctrine, cast away all afflictive emotions, and manifested arhatship.”

The Betrothal of the Bride: Two Stories

The First “Betrothal of the Bride” Story

When the Blessed One was in Śrāvastī, there lived two householders who were very close friends. One day, one of them said to the other, “My friend, let’s make certain that come what may, the bond between us can never be broken.”

“How could we do that?” asked the other householder.

“We have to become kin,” said the first.

“Do you have a son or daughter?” wondered the other.

“No, I don’t,” said the first.

“Well, if you don’t have a son or daughter and I don’t either, how will we ever be kin?” asked the other.